Water-alcohol injection systems for use in internal combustion engines are known in the art. These systems provide users of such devices with significant vehicle power advantages. By injecting water and alcohol to the fuel-air mixture entering the combustion chamber, an engine's power output may be greatly increased while simultaneously decreasing the combustion chamber's temperature.
Although these are just two of the benefits that one may obtain when using prior art water/alcohol-injection systems, prior art systems are limited in many respects. For example, current water/alcohol injection systems require a user to perform a significant manual “tuning” of the system upon installation. Tuning prior art water/alcohol injection systems upon installation typically requires configuring settings within engine and injection system controllers. For example, prior art systems may comprise an injection level selector on a system component. Often, upon installation, a user is required to adjust the injection amount—if the engine experiences combustion quench, also known as “bucking”, the injection amount is decreased. Bucking occurs when too much water or a water/alcohol mixture is put into the combustion chamber, retarding power output. Other adjustments, such as, but not limited to, mechanical adjustments of the pump or nozzle may also be required to adequately set the injection level for specific engine power levels. Tuning a system upon installation of a water/alcohol system is time consuming and can be difficult to perform correctly, especially for a novice of automotive upgrades.
Additionally, prior art water/alcohol injection systems do not automatically inject an amount of mixture calculated to maximize the power output at any given engine state. For example, prior art injection system controllers generally lack the capacity to provide a precise amount of water/alcohol mixture to create the maximum power without creating engine “knocking”. Engine knocking occurs when the air/fuel mixture in the cylinder has been ignited and the typical smooth burning within the chamber is interrupted by the unburned mixture in the combustion chamber exploding before the flame front can reach it. The resulting shock wave creates a knocking sound against the chamber walls.
Prior art systems are additionally defective in their display of operational data to the user and the features they provide. Many prior art systems do not provide the user with information the user needs to continually run the system in the most efficient manner possible. Also, prior art systems do not allow active and real-time or near real-time control of injection of a water/alcohol mixture.